L inda Roberts works in a variety of mediums- sculpture, acrylic painting, printmaking, and mixed media. In her own words, “My perfect day would be to wake up in the morning and to be able to lose oneself in the process of creating art.” As a child growing up in West Point, Va. she was fortunate to have a grandmother, called “Nonnie”, who inspired her love of art. As the years passed she took classes at the Torpedo Factory in Alexandria, Va. where her passion for sculpture and monotype printmaking was ignited.
She attended the University of Georgia where she graduated with a ABJ degree and Va. Commonwealth with a degree in education. Later she attended New York University-the Study Abroad Program in Studio Art in Venice, Italy where she received a masters degree in art. She was invited to make her debut at the Institute Statale D’Arte in Venice, Italy. She has shown her work in galleries in New York and Florida and Venice. Her travels throughout Europe, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, Central and South America have influenced the imagery within her artwork. She lived in Ashiya, Japan where she taught English and was influenced by Japanese art which later inspired the subtractive process of monotype printmaking which can be seen in her prints.
She is currently working on a new series of clay busts and abstract acrylic paintings. She resides in Tampa, FL
Artist’s Statement
Painting
My paintings illustrate my fascination with the world of abstraction. Through lines, shapes, the interplay of colors, and layering I am challenged to resolve the puzzle the painting has created. Influenced from the emotive colorations of German and Abstract Expressionism, I am drawn into a world of self expression coupled with the chaos of the unconscious. I try to find a resolution to a world not made of visual references, giving hope in the joy found in a world of color, shape, and form. In this world, there are no boundaries, and freedom of the human spirit rules supreme.
Monotype Print
I am fascinated by the world of cultural symbols and icons and the many meanings they possess over the ages. I like to transfer this imagery into a narrative story or a dream-like state.
Symbols give ordinary things a larger dimension and express concepts such as love, fertility, immortality, rebirth, power, hope, joy, courage, and protection. I use animal symbols frequently in my work such as the lion and dragon. Fairytales and folklore have a strong influence on my visual language. My desire is to tell a story or to take a journey into a land of fantasy.
Clay Sculpture
My sculptures are extensions of myself and speak of the human condition. Each intimately sculpted figurative form from clay speaks of the grief and pain and scope of emotions that is inescapable in the intricate weavings of our lives. My alabaster toned figures through their contorted and attenuated forms become eloquent expressions of sorrow and give silent testimony to the human capacity for survival. I am inspired by classical sculpture of ancient Greece and Rome.
Currently, I am working on a series of whimsical clay busts using underglazes and borrowing imagery from nature and animal life that become part of my sculpture. There may be a bird perched on a head, shoulder, or flying out of the body or a rabbit draped over a shoulder or a gondola commandeered by a bluebird on a head. I am inspired by magical realism and fairytales that shape the story of the sculpture.
Artist’s Exhibitions
2019 St. Pete First Art Collective, Solo Art Show, Gilbert Chapel Gallery, St. Petersburg, FL
2019 Carrollwood Cultural Art Center, Bella Unica Art Show, Tampa, FL
2018 St. Pete First Art Collective, “Colors of the Season”- Bella Unica Art Show, Gilbert Chapel Gallery, St. Petersburg, FL
2018 The Vinoy Renaissance St. Petersburg Resort & Golf Club, Global Day of Discovery, St. Petersburg, FL
2018 The Vinoy Renaissance St. Petersburg Resort & Golf Club, Bella Unica Art Gallery, St. Petersburg, FL
2018 Bella Unica Art Gallery, Kozuba Distillery, St. Petersburg, FL
2018 Morean Art Center, Members Art Show, St. Petersburg, FL
2018 Brick Street Clay, Members Show, St. Petersburg, FL
2017 St. Petersburg Opera Co., 2145 1st. Ave. S., St. Petersburg, FL 33712
2017 Ruth Eckerd Hall, 1111 McMullen Booth Rd., Clearwater, FL
2016 Bella Unica Art Show, Vinoy, St. Petersburg, FL
2016 Davidson Fine Art, 2036 Central Ave., St. Petersburg, FL 33712
2013 Gallery 221-HCC-Tampa, FL
2012 Morean Art Center, 719 Central Ave., St. Petersburg, FL 33701
2011 Tampa Museum, 120 W. Gasparilla Plaza, Tampa, FL 33602
2010 Morean Art Center, 719 Central Ave., St. Petersburg, FL 33701
2009 Art Emporium, Bay to Bay, Tampa, FL 33629
2008 Art Emporium, Bay to Bay, Tampa, FL 33629
2007 Morean Art Center, 719 Central Ave., St. Petersburg, FL33701
2005 Tampa Museum, 120 W. Gasparilla Plaza, Tampa, FL 33602
2003 Morean Art Center, 719 Central Ave. St., St. Petersburg, FL 33701
2000 Tampa Museum, 120 W. Gasparilla Plaza, Tampa, FL 33602
1997 Spectrum 2000, Tampa, FL
1996 Spectrum 2000, Tampa, FL
1995 Casa Italiana Serilli-Marimo, “The Venetian Experience”, 24 West 12th St., New York, NY 10011
1995 Galerie Nouvel Esprit, 3309 W. Kennedy, Tampa, FL
1994 St. Petersburg Art Center, 1000 7th St. South, St. Petersburg, FL 33701
1993 80 Square Washington Square East Galleries, NYU University, New York, NY 10003
1992 Institute D’Arte, “NYU Venice 1992”, Venice, Italy
1992 St. Petersburg Art Center, 1000 7th St. South, St. Petersburg, FL33701
1991 Institute Statale D’Arte, “NYU Venice 1991”, Venice, Italy
1990 St. Petersburg Art Center, 1000 7th St. South, St. Petersburg, FL 33701
1990 Hyde Park Art Center, 705 Swann Ave. Tampa, FL
1990 Marchese Gallery, Mac Dill Ave., Tampa, FL
1989 Palazzo Pemma, “NYU Venice 1989”, Venice, Italy
1988 Palazzo Pemma, “NYU Venice 1988”, Venice, Italy